Chapter 7 – Rambo Style
Carey lay on top of James as he blew at strands of her blonde hair. As usual she was spending time over at his family’s house, away from the trailer park where she lived. She wanted this moment to last forever, just him and her on his bed being together. She ran her hands through his low-cut dark hair and kissed the bridge of her nose.
He giggled. “That tickles. I love when you do that.”
“I know that’s why I keep doing it.”
“I wish I could lie here all day but it’s my sisters quinceanera and I have to start packing for school.”
Carey groaned at the fact that he was leaving for college. “Are we going to survive this? A year a part.”
James laughed. “Of course. You’ll graduate next year and then join me at State, right?”
“That is the plan.”
“Just promise me you’ll look out for Hector and Dora. He’s starting to let his football stardom go to his head and I don’t want Dora to get lost in the freshman shuffle.” James ran his hand down her face. “I love you and my family does too, my mom wouldn’t mind you playing big sister to them.”
Carey kissed James. “I promise.”
“Together, forever?”
Carey simply responded with another kiss.
Carey hated the word forever because everybody knew everything ended. As she crept through the halls of Harrison High she only saw endings. On many of the walls and doors blood was spread, so many lives lost today. She wondered how long it was before she would end up like the others, a mindless zombie.
John, who led the front of the short line came to a stop. “There’s a zombie outside the staircase entry.”
“The other entries are too far,” Carey said from the back. “The less walking we do the safer.”
“Right,” John agreed. “Plus this staircase entry lets us out closer to the cafeteria than the others.”
Brand gripped his flute tightly. “I’ll take out this zombie, just watch my back.”
“Are you sure you want to do this,” Carey asked.
“Fear is something to be conquered is what my father used to say,” Brand proudly said. “I will not fear them.”
John nodded forward. “Then the stage is yours Brand, be careful.”
Brand slowly crept towards the stair well entry that was blocked by the roaming zombie. In one hand he held a flute and in the other a sharpened pencil. His heart raced but he imagined himself being watched by his webshow viewers. They would want him to be brave; they would root for him to succeed. The zombie’s back to him, Brand tapped the creature on the shoulder with the flute. Immediately, the zombie-student spun to face him and Brand drove the pencil until it’s skull. Carey and John rushed over as the body dropped to the ground and Brand removed his bloody pencil.
Carey patted Brand on the back. “Great job, Rambo.”
Brand smirked, his heart race stabilizing and imagining the comments he would get for his act of bravery.